The True Tale of Morrowseer
Note: Almost all of these characters and the prophecy are not mine. PLEASE DO NOT EDIT, unless, like I say in all my other pages, THERE ARE ERRORS IN THE SPELLING OR SOMETHING LIKE THAT. :) - Misty PS - SPOILER ALERT FOR THOSE WHO HAVEN'T READ Wings of Fire: The Dark Secret. Chapter One Morrowseer unleashed a thunderous roar as he flew over the fortress. The lava that crept down the sides of the volcano was slow, but it was dangerous, and it was coming right towards the fortress so GET OUT OF THERE I'VE BEEN ROARING AT YOU THIS ENTIRE TIME THREE MOONS - '' The NightWings poured out of all the entrances, wings spreading almost immediately as they struggled to gain altitude. Several crippled NightWings dragged themselves towards the trees, but others were lifted into the air by a trio of friends or family. ''FINALLY, ''Morrowseer thought. But he kept that to himself. "Wait!" shrieked one older NightWing, a female. "Where is Secretkeeper?" "It was her turn to guard the treasure room with Brightsong and Moonscale," fretted another. "She must still be there." "And what about Brightsong?" asked a male. He trembled visibly - was he Brightsong's partner? Morrowseer had no idea who Brightsong or Secretkeeper were, but Moonscale was his sister. "MOONSCALE!" he bellowed into the crowd. The male who was worrying about Brightsong looked up at him. "Moonscale isn't here either," he said in a half choked voice. "She must be still there with the others. Oh, what will we do?" He let forth another cry of despair. "Three moons, can you ''stop ''that infernal noise?" Morrowseer growled down at him. "I am trying to think." The only possible course of action would be going to the treasure room and finding Moonscale and the others. That was obviously the right thing to do...right? Morrowseer hovered, undecided, and then finally gritted his teeth. He would be no major loss to the tribe if he got smushed by falling rocks or boiled in lava. But if he saved the three dragonesses (he assumed that all of them were dragonesses) then he would be honoured, right? And who would ''want ''to die because of lava? Fine. Then it was decided. Morrowseer detatched himself from his tribe and dove towards the fortress. An uninteligable shriek followed him as he hurtled downwards, wind whistling in his ears. The treasure room was at the base of a squat stone tower. The lava had reached the far wall and was slowly oozing towards it like a herd of gigantic glow worms. Morrowseer landed on the ground (it was already burning hot) and shoved the resisting door open. It was stifling in the treasure room, and almost as hot as the ground outside. He met three dying pairs of eyes, two of them already half unconcious. "Moonscale!" Morrowseer exclaimed. He rushed forwards to catch her before she collapsed onto the ground. "M-Morrowseer?" Moonscale's bleary eyes unfocused. "We have to get you all out of here," Morrowseer said frantically. "Come on, Moonscale! Brightsong! Secretkeeper! Let's go!" But Moonscale's and one of the other NightWing's breathing became shallower and shallower. He began to drag Moonscale towards the door, but she was too heavy. And her eyes had already glazed over. "Moonscale!" Morrowseer clutched her talons in his. "Goodbye...brother..." Moonscale leaned back towards the other dragoness. Morrowseer thought he caught a glint of something in her talons, but he thought that was because he had a film of tears over his eyes. The one remaining dragoness was still alive, though. She staggered towards the door. ''I'm not letting another NightWing down, Morrowseer thought determinedly. He rushed forwards and wrapped a wing around her, then began to half push half pull her towards the door. She coughed and stumbled, but Morrowseer didn't let go until they were safely out of the treasure room. He closed his eyes so he didn't have to watch the tower being devoured by the hungry maw of lava. "Can you fly?" Morrowseer asked the dragoness. "Y-Yes." Her voice was cracked and parched. "T-Thank you." Morrowseer bit back a retort about how there was no time for 'thank yous', but something stopped him. The dragoness stepped forwards and spread her wings, then lifted off into the air. He followed her, and they silently followed the main crowd of NightWings. Chapter Two After a few days, it was finallly confirmed that it was safe to enter what remained of the fortress. Morrowseer learned that the dragoness he had rescued was Secretkeeper. Moonscale and Brightsong were dead. He was summoned to Battlewinner's throneroom that afternoon. Battlewinner narrowed her eyes when she saw him approaching. He bowed low and respectfully, with a quiet "Your Majesty" to follow through. "You are Morrowseer, right?" "Yes, Your Majesty." "They say that you are smart, and have a way with words. I need your help." "Excuse me, Your Majesty?" "The other tribes think that we are all-knowing...all-powerful. And, yes, they are right about that, but they also believe that we can read minds and see the future, and also deliver prophecies. So, I need your help to come up with a prophecy that will save us from this horrid fate. Find us a new home, Morrowseer. Save your tribe." Chapter Three Morrowseer thought about what the queen had said. He knew how much he loved his tribe. Fine. He was going to write a prophecy. It would have to be believable and amazing and all that sort of stuff. Morrowseer blinked and stared listlessly out at the rows of scrolls. He held a blank piece of parchment in one claw and a quill in the other. He had done plenty of research on the other dragon tribes, and he had finally selected a home for the tribe. The rainforest would be perfect. But he would need the help of a SandWing queen... Words suddenly flowed into his mind. It was like he was making it up at that very instant... He dipped his claw into the ink and pressed it against the scroll. When the war has lasted twenty years... The dragonets will come. When the land is soaked in blood and tears... The dragonets will come. Fine the SeaWing egg of deepest blue. Wings of nights shall come to you. The largest egg in mountain high Will give to you the wings of sky. For wings of earth Search through the mud For an egg the colour of dragon blood. And hidden alone from the rival queens '' ''The SandWing egg awaits unseen. Of three queen who blister and blaze and burn Two shall die and one shall learn That if she bows to a fate that is stronger and higher She'll have the power of wings of fire. Five eggs to hatch on brightest night Five dragons born to end the fight. Darkness will rise to bring the light. The dragonets are coming... There. Not too shabby. Morrowseer sat back with satisfaction. It sounded perfect and believable, exactly made for useless gullible dragons. Of course, they could plant the SandWing egg in the desert for the Talons in Pieces or whatever the weird club was named. And the 'darkness' would be the NightWings, once they had chosen the queen that would be victorious. And she could help them conquer the rainforest. Wings of fire could mean the Eye of Onyx, if one thought about it the one way. But, in reality, the majority of the prophecy was just smoke and mirrors. Chapter Four - A Few Years Later Morrowseer eyed the nervous young animus dragon with some distaste. He looked like an opponent that would be easy to defeat in battle. His name was Stonemover (what a ridiculous name) and he was a bit younger than Morrowseer. They were standing by a rock, not far from the half demolished fortress. Stonemover kept wringing his talons and looking over his shoulder. Morrowseer let out a soft hiss. Were they seriously trusting this nervous animus? In Morrowseer's opinion, animus dragons should be brought down. They couldn't be trusted for all the gold in the world. Especially after what happened with the Darkstalker. It's the IceWing blood, I'm sure. ''Stonemover had a smidgen IceWing in him, since his ancestor was half IceWing. That was two thousand years ago, but Morrowseer still thought that even a drop of a different kind of blood would mean traitorous activity. "So," Morrowseer said menacingly. "Do you think that you can build a tunnel to the rainforest? And from there, a tunnel to the Kingdom of Sand?" Stonemover shuffled anxiously. "I think so?" Morrowseer snorted. "I don't think I like that question mark at the end of that statement. Can you, or can't you? Yes or no?" "Yes?" Morrowseer felt like throttling this dragon. "Fine. Then go ahead." Stonemover took a deep, shuddering breath and placed his claws on the rock. It was actually a boulder, a huge, massive boulder that was taller than Battlewinner. It looked like it was slowly ''melting away. Morrowseer hid his horror with a snarl. "Is it done now?" he asked. "I-I think so." He rubbed himself with his talons, as if he were cold. Morrowseer stepped right into the unsettling feeling and walked down the tunnel as if it were nothing. He heard Stonemover scampering behind him, but he didn't turn to look back. After a minute or so, they reached the end of the tunnel. A soft light reached them, and Morrowseer took a deep breath. The air was so fresh, unlike the horrid smoke that they had to breathe on the volcano. He turned to Stonemover. "Kingdom of Sand. Now." Stonemover gulped. "O-okay," he muttered. Morrowseer flicked him with his tail angrily, wishing that he had a SandWing barb on the end. The animus ducked his head and began to scratch at the earth, overturning bits of moss and other rainforest plants. Morrowseer took in a quick breath as a realization hit him. The tunnel could come out of anywhere in the Kingdom of Sand! The Scorpion Den, in the middle of an oasis - oh, and the stronghold! ''Morrowseer lashed his tail. "Stonemover, stop. Go to the Kingdom of Sand and find a good entrance for this tunnel, then make it come to the rainforest." "What!? The Kingdom of Sand? Fly there!?" Stonemover began to wring his talons furiously. Morrowseer wanted to bite his claws off to make him stop. "I can't do it. I'm sorry. I can't." "No one ever thought you could," Morrowseer growled. "You're just a weak RainWing on the inside, and you're going to fail our tribe." Stonemover opened and closed his jaws, as if he was going to say something. Then he finally clamped his jaws shut and nodded mutely. "Good." Well aware of Stonemover’s confused and hurt expression, Morrowseer swept majestically towards the tunnel and back to the Night Kingdom. He thought that he could hear the whisper of wings behind him, signaling that Stonemover had begun his journey to the Kingdom of Sand, but it might have been the wind brushing against the leaves instead. Morrowseer felt as if he were choking when he returned to the smog-filled island. His throat ached, and the air seemed even more sharp and unwelcoming than usual. Chapter Five Under Morrowseer’s instruction, Stonemover sent numerous letters back to the Night Kingdom, informing him about progress and things like that. Morrowseer suggested that he start the tunnel near the stronghold, so that whoever they chose for the next SandWing queen could have an easy access to the rainforest. Some of the letters mentioned a SandWing peasant named ‘Thorn’. Morrowseer returned the letters always with the same reply; ‘end the SandWing if she gets to friendly’. After a length of silence, Morrowseer was handed a tightly bound scroll. He opened it up, worried that it would say more about this Thorn character, but instead it said: ''To Morrowseer, It is done. The tunnel is complete. But I am not returning to the Night Kingdom. I’m going some place where the NightWings will never find me. I can’t use my animus power to serve our tribe anymore. '' ''From, Stonemover Along with the letter was a map of where the tunnel was situated. Morrowseer growled under his breath. At least the tunnel was built, but he had a nasty feeling that the reason for Stonemover’s departure was because of that SandWing. Maybe I could persuade him to remain loyal to his tribe, Morrowseer thought, with the help of my claws and teeth and fire. He rubbed his talons together and hissed. “Tell the queen that what we were waiting for had finally been done,” he ordered a young NightWing. What was his name again? Oh, right. Strongwings. “Uh - the queen?” “Yes, the queen.” But at that exact instant, several NightWings barged into the library. “Morrowseer!” Wisdom said. She ducked her head respectfully, breaths shallow and quick. “Her Majesty is suffering severe wounds! She requests your presence immediately!” “Quiet! Quiet!” a weedy dragon snarled at her. “This is a library, young lady, not a -” He was cut off as Morrowseer shoved him out of the way. He darted after Wisdom and the other NightWings, heart pounding. What had happened to Queen Battlewinner? What if she died and her useless daughter Greatness took the throne? And worst of all: what will happen to my tribe? They threw themselves into the Council chamber, where Battlewinner lay, next to the lava. Morrowseer flapped his wings frantically. “Your Majesty! Your Majesty!” “Mother!” Greatness sobbed beside her. Morrowseer reached the queen’s side, ready to help the healer. But there were no external injuries to be seen - - no! Curse those IceWings! Morrowseer hissed inwardly. Battlewinner’s eyes were turning an icy blue, and frost was spreading across her chest and muzzle. When she opened her mouth to speak, he could see that the inside was coated with the same frost that covered her chest. “The lava!” Mastermind shrieked from behind Morrowseer. “Put her in the lava! The lava!” “Like that would help,” the healer muttered, rolling his eyes. Morrowseer was already shoving Battlewinner towards the lava. She was struggling furiously, but then she subsided. Her breaths were getting more and more ragged. “NO!” Greatness sceamed. She flung herself at Morrowseer and tried to haul him away, but he smacked her aside with a single blow of his tail. The other NightWings began to plead with him and badger him, clawing him with sharp talons. Stop, you spineless worms! I’m trying to help her! Morrowseer growled, and with one mighty push threw Battlewinner into the red hot lava. He leapt back just in time as a shower of golden droplets fountained into the air, then plummeted back to the magma. There was no cry of pain, no thrashing or agonized movement. Morrowseer twitched his tail. Had he been too late…? Battlewinner raised her head out of the lava, ice blue eyes wide with amazement. “I - I’m alive.” “Mother!” Greatness cried joyously. She flew over to the queen, ready to embrace her, but Battlewinner shied away. Her scales must be burning hot to the touch. “How do you feel, Your Majesty?” Morrowseer asked. “I feel...normal.” She coughed, as if talking hurt. “Who - who did this?” Mastermind opened his jaws importantly, but Morrowseer stepped in front of him. “I did, Your Majesty.” He felt Mastermind’s enraged eyes boring into his back, but Morrowseer didn’t flinch at all. “Morrowseer...you’ve proven yourself...to be a loyal and - and trusted NightWing. For this...you must be rewarded.” Battlewinner shivered, then submerged herself once again into the lava. “I…” “You must be...my right claw dragon,” Battlewinner decided. “You saved...your queen’s life.” “Nothing would honour me more,” Morrowseer said, bowing deeply. Chapter Six - Some More Years Later “Are you absolutely sure that it is okay to hunt in the rainforest?” Morrowseer asked. Secretkeeper gave him an exasperated look. She was only a few days away from egg-laying, and dragonets were so precious...Morrowseer couldn’t bear if something happened to the egg. “I’m not going to shatter into pieces,” she told him. “I should come with you.” “No, you shouldn’t, because otherwise you won’t let me hunt anything besides a banana,” Secretkeeper said in annoyance. “Let her go,” Farsight said wisely. “It’s natural for dragonesses to want to be this active before egg-laying. Right, Fierceteeth?” She nuzzled her daughter, who flinched away with a snarl. Morrowseer let out a huge sigh. “FINE. But if you’re not back by moonhigh, I will personally tear apart the rainforest to find you.” “I’ll be perfectly all right,” Secretkeeper said. She trotted towards the ledge and then unfurled her wings, then launched herself into the sky. Morrowseer was about to go into the rainforest himself (it was moonhigh) when Secretkeeper came charging out of the tunnel, eyes streaming with tears. She blindly spread her wings, and Morrowseer followed her into the sky. She dove into the forest and let out a heartbroken wail, and when Morrowseer landed beside her he saw the she had thrown herself against a tree and was crying hysterically. “Secretkeeper!” he said with alarm. She tensed as if he had bitten her, and he forced his tone to a more quieter note. “What happened?” “The egg,” she gasped. “It was cracked.” Secretkeeper collapsed into a fit of tears again. “I had cramps when I was flying...oh, Morrowseer, I’m so sorry!” A few days after that certain incident, Morrowseer was confronted by Mastermind, who could be classified as the most tactless dragon in the history of dragonkind. The wiry NightWing beckoned him into the lab and spoke in a hushed voice. “I don’t think Secretkeeper is telling us the whole truth,” he said. “I mean, did you see how much she was crying? She’s never cried like that before.” “Well, what do you think?” Morrowseer snarled. “She - we - just lost an egg! And that means no more new dragonet for the NightWings!” His shattered heart seemed to splinter into a thousand more smithereens. Mastermind gave him an impatient look. "Farsight was sad when our egg was taken away, but she didn't cry her eyes out like that. I think Secretkeeper is faking. She must have hidden her egg in the rainforest." Morrowseer's claws itched to rake Mastermind across the face. "Your ''precious dragonet is being adored and worshiped and fed EVERY DAY rather than live his USELESS WORTHLESS LIFE in this HORRIBLE VOLCANO!" Mastermind's expression changed to one of ecstasy. "My dragonet is a male?" he asked, the point totally missed in Morrowseer's fuming. "What does he look like? What's his name?" "That is no buisness of yours," Morrowseer hissed. "Now, if you are quite finished, I would like to carry on with my life." He turned around, but not after hitting Mastermind's oversized head with his tail. Chapter Six - ''A Year Later A year passed, and Morrowseer began to recover from the shock. Secretkeeper acted strange and hollow, and she disappeared almost every other night to the rainforest. Morrowseer desperately wanted to go with her, to tell her that it was going to be all right, but she always refused and told him to 'focus on the important things in life'. And now tonight was the night that the egg would have hatched. Morrowseer swept through the hallways, searching for Secretkeeper. He only found Mastermind and Farsight, lurking at the entrance to their cave. "Have you seen Secretkeeper?" he asked Farsight. He pretended Mastermind didn't exist. "Oh, yes, I have! Poor dear, ''she looked quite heartbroken." Farsight shook her head with sympathy. "She wanted to be alone," Mastermind said, giving Morrowseer a meaningful look that CLEARLY meant 'go follow your partner because I bet she is totally going to the rainforest to see a certain egg hatch'. Morrowseer hissed at him. But then there was that awful ''doubt... He had to go check to make sure and prove that stupid scientest (and, though he didn't want to admit it, himself) that Secretkeeper wasn't keeping a massive secret, as her name suggested. Morrowseer tried not to rush out of the fortress. He flew to the tunnel mouth and landed beside Preyhunter. Secretkeeper's scent clung faintly to the air. Without a single word to Preyhunter, Morrowseer barged past him and through the tunnel. The rainforest greeted him, and above there were two full moons. Their gleaming shapes gave him a certain calmness. A thousand different kinds of animals chirped and hummed and buzzed in a steady monotone, but living on a volcano Morrowseer thought that he had never heard any place sound so alive ''and ''beautiful. I'm coming, Secretkeeper, ''he told the NightWing dragoness silently. He hissed as his claws brushed against something, and then he recoiled when he saw that it was a smooth, black egg. It couldn't be! Morrowseer barely had time to register the sound of flapping wings. The egg rolled from his talons as he dove into the cover of a small tree. Morrowseer crept through the undergrowth, unsure of what he should do. But then he heard a scrabbling sound...Secretkeeper was digging frantically in the soil. Then something made her whirl around with a hiss...she was facing away from him now, and staring at something unseen. Morrowseer shifted to one side and caught sight of an egg...a silver egg. It was cast in the light of the two moons and rocking violently. Judging by Secretkeeper's tense shoulders, he guessed that she didn't know why the egg was silver either. Secretkeeper approached it cautiously, then curled her claws around the egg. It shattered, and a small squeak sounded from in front of her. Morrowseer wanted to fly out of the bushes and confront Secretkeeper. But he knew that she would be angry, and that there was a good reason why she didn't tell him this. ''Mastermind was right, he thought sadly and furiously. Secretkeeper lifted the dragonet up to the moons, and Morrowseer felt his breath catch in his throat. Their daughter was the most perfect dragonet ever. She was also beautiful, with teardrop silver scales at the corner of her eyes. Her scales were as black as the night above and as polished as a crow feather. Secretkeeper turned, so that her left side was facing Morrowseer now. She hugged the small dragonet to her chest and said, "I'm your mother, little one." Her voice was barely audible from where Morrowseer was, and he inched closer to hear better. "I'm going to call you Moonwatcher. You're going to have the happiest life any dragon has ever had, and you're going to live forever and ever, and the volcano will never have you." Morrowseer was about to walk towards her, but then a sudden thought struck him. She didn't tell me because she didn't trust me, ''he thought with aboslute horror. ''She thinks that I will tell the tribe - I would ''never! But if he confronted her at all, Secretkeeper would DEFINITELY never trust him. ''Maybe I can meet Moonwatcher when she's gone, ''Morrowseer thought, but he immediately rejected the idea. ''She would tell Secretkeeper right away, and then Secretkeeper would... ''he didn't want to imagine what Secretkeeper would do. ''I'll watch from a distance, he decided. She may never know her father's name, but that's fine. He leaped into the sky and flew back to the tunnel. Category:Content (Mist the Moon Dragon) Category:Fanfictions (Semi-Canon) Category:Fanfictions Category:Fanfictions (Completed)